Prince of the Eternal Flame
by Syynex
Summary: For as long as he cold remember they had been his to control, tongues of fire that bent to his will, and now, thrust into a war between worlds he hadn't known existed, those flames will be his only hope of survival. Well, those and the giant-ass sword that apparently comes with his new job.
1. Chapter 1

**Today I decided to post all the stories gathering dust in my folders. I figure that if NeonZangetsu-Sempai can do it so can I. Don't expect updates on these, I'm just posting them so you can all see why I take forever to update. Enjoy ^_^**

* * *

Some one was here, he could feel them, a spark of life, the flame of their soul. There was no way he could ignore such an obvious presence, especially when it was appearing in his room so late at night. The golden eyes of Kurosaki Ichigo opened and scanned his room for the intruder, finding her standing at the foot of his bed.

With agility far surpassing any cat, the teen slipped from his bed and silently moved in on the woman. When he was within grabbing distance he did just that, tightly wrapping his left arm around her tiny waist and bringing his right hand before her face.

It was obvious that she was surprised, if her gasp was anything to go by, but that really wasn't his concern right now. All that mattered at the moment was finding out who they were and why they were here, even if life had taught him to hit first ask questions later. He could make an exception for a woman whom he currently had his arm around.

Within his cupped right hand burst forth a small flame, pulsing gently to the beat of his heart. This power of his had been with him for as long as he could remember; the ability to call forth and control flames. He had kept it a secret, of course, from everyone else, already seen as different due to his strange eyes, eyes that most people he had met were afraid of. Telling them that he could control something as dangerous as fire wouldn't have helped him seem less frightening.

Did that mean he never used it? Hell no! He was constantly using it, practicing and training with this…this.. hmm, he wasn't sure if such a thing was a blessing or a curse, but either way he had managed to gain remarkable skill with it. It was now child's play for him to summon a large pillar of flame, or to forge himself a blade of fire, leaving him with only one thing to master; Lightning.

He had done it once, while training his fire-bending (as he had begun calling it), and had been trying to replicate it ever since, to no avail. Fire was a hard thing to control, lightning was nearly impossible. Was he somehow going about it wrong? Did you need to be in a certain emotional state? He supposed such thoughts were better reserved for when he wasn't holding someone captive.

"Here's how this is going to work," He said, holding the flame close to her face. "I'm going to ask questions and you're going to answer them. Is that clear?"

"Y-yes" She managed to stammer. He really couldn't blame her, his flames often melted metal during his training.

"Good, first question; who are you?"

"Kuchiki Rukia, lieutenant of division thirteen." She hissed in response, not very appreciative of her current situation.

"Hmm, interesting, we'll come back to that later. Why are you here?"

"I'm came because I sensed a hollow in this area that I need to purify." Answered the woman.

"A Hollo-" A loud screech interrupted him mid-question.

"Let me guess, that was the Hollow." That sounded like it was just outside his house, just fucking great.

"Yeah, that would be it." Came her dry remark.

"So I should probably let you go deal with it." He commented, the flame disappearing and his arm releasing its hold on her waist.

"That would be for the best, just stay here, I won't have humans drawn into this." And with that she was off, darting out of his room and down the stairs to where, he presumed, the hollow currently was.

He would have followed after her had he not found his younger sister Yuzu laying injured in the hallway. Gently scooping her into his arms, he brought the brunette to his bed and tucked her in before heading out, shutting the door behind him.

* * *

By the time Ichigo had finished descending the stairs the battle- if it could be called such- had progressed considerably and very well could have been at its climax. Rukia was collapsed on the ground, staring up at the hollow and bleeding profusely, and his other sister- Karin- was laying face-first on the road. Luckily she was alive, as he could still feel the warmth all human life possessed. Realizing that his interference was prudent, he attacked.

Had he not possessed the ability to control flames, Ichigo might have found himself charging forward with a folded chair, instead he punched the air, sending a huge stream of amber fire towards the Hollow, catching it by surprise.

It howled in fear as the tongues of scarlet rolled over its flesh, but looked confused when it came out unharmed. Unconcerned about his failure, Ichigo pressed on, sending wave after wave of flame towards the beast. While it may not have harmed it, it definitely kept its attention on him, and an animalistic fear of fire stopped it from approaching him. That was good enough for him, his entire goal was to keep it from harming anyone else. Now he just had to figure out his next move. Would he go towards the injured form of Rukia and use his fire to keep the hollow at a distance, or did he draw the hollow away from his house?

Deciding that Rukia was his best chance of discovering how to defeat the monster, he made his way over, never ceasing in his bending.

"You can't harm it," mumbled Rukia as he neared her. "Hollows are spiritual beings and your physical fire has no solid substance, it won't do anything."

Normally, he would have been able to solidify his flames and begin attacking with those, but it took a lot of energy, energy he didn't have due to the training he did earlier that day.

"Then how do you propose I beat it?" He asked, eyes never leaving those of the hollow.

"You need spirit energy, reiryoku." Came the less-than-helpful answer.

"Uh-huh, and how would I get some of that?"

"Mine, take some of mine. If you don't we, and your family, will die, there's no other option."

"Fine, what do I have to do?" he was starting to feel the effects of doing bending after exhausting himself. The limits of his bending were pushed earlier and doing much more would either leave him without bending or, more likely, knock him unconscious. It didn't help that it was night, he always had more trouble bending after the sun had set.

She held up her sword and answered. "My Zanpakuto is a representation of my Shinigami powers, my partner in battle, stab it through your heart and I'll be able to pour some of my power into your soul."

Yeah, that sounded safe, but he didn't have much of a choice at the moment. With a resigned sigh he grabbed the blade, gaining a rather deep cut over his left palm, and plunged it into his chest.

The feeling it brought was not the pain he had been expecting, but rather a calming cold rushing through his veins, bringing with it a serenity never before experienced by the teen.

For a boy who had always had an abnormally-high body temperature and spent most of his free time hurling around fire, such cold was a strange feeling.

A feeling far from unpleasant.

Sadly, he did not have time to relish in this new feeling, the hollow needed to be dealt with as soon as possible, the lives of his family and the woman bleeding out beside him depended on it.

A flash of light signaled the end of the instantaneous exchange and he immediately drew an outrageously oversized sword from his back, the blade almost as tall as he was. Gripping the sword's handle brought the same cold feeling as gaining these powers had, but upon noticing the large hollow slit that took up most of the blade- which would explain why it was so light- he decided to try something. Fire surged to life within the sword, an ethereal blade supported by razor edges. It should be possible, in the future, to solidify the flame within this weapon eerily well suited to himself, but that was for another time.

Oddly enough, the handle was still cold, and he could have sworn he had heard a content female sigh as his flames washed over the blade. Passing it off as Rukia being relieved, he charged the terrified hollow, blazing sword trailing behind him.

For what seemed to be a rather long, eventful night, the ending was severely anticlimactic, his superheated sword passing through the flesh of the retreating hollow without the slightest bit of resistance. It was actually quite impressive that his blade had held up to the heat of his flame. What was this thing made of? Or, perhaps, he was just so tired that his flames were becoming far less intense.

Did he just have a sudden sense of indignation originating from.. his sword? Damn he was tired.

He turned to Rukia, who was now dressed in plain white robes- an improvement in his opinion- and staring at him in shock. What? Had she never seen a kick-ass teen wielding a huge fucking sword at a moment's notice? Probably not, but you'd think that as a Shinigami that fought those Hollows on a regular basis she'd be less surprised by this.

"Well, I'm going to put Karin in her bed and get some sleep, it's been a long nigh. See you around, Rukia." The teen started walking towards his sister but ended up collapsing to the ground beside her, too exhausted to remain awake any longer.

Fighting back a sweat-drop, Rukia pulled a phone out from her robes, she was going to need a lot of help covering this up.

* * *

Ice, snow, it was all she had known for her entire existence, but now it was gone. Replacing the normal white wasteland was a warm garden, surrounded by a large crimson building. It was obviously a courtyard of some palace or mansion, and she obviously wasn't within Rukia's inner world, but Sode no Shirayuki couldn't find it within herself to care.

She currently sat under a blossoming sakura tree, the sweet scent of which wafted through the air of a summer evening, next to a lake, feeding the small turtle-duck hybrids that swam there. They were far less strange, and definitely more adorable, than that accursed Chappy her wielder had been so fond of.

Idly, she wondered who her current landlord was, and if she would ever meet them. They were a fire type, that much was revealed during the recent fight when she felt that amazing warmth envelop her. She could still feel it, the sparks of pleasure over her skin, but they were slowly, agonizingly, fading into the cold her body had always possessed.

Giving a sigh, she picked up a turtle-duck and placed it on her lap, falling asleep against the sakura tree under an eternal sunset, dreaming of once again being wrapped in that fiery embrace.

* * *

Ignoring the usual stares and mutterings of his classmates, Ichigo made his way to the far corner of the room where his one and only friend was waiting for him.

"Hey, Sado." Greeted the orange haired teen. The large Hispanic gave a grunt and a nod in return, like every day. He would have sat down at his desk had someone not have spoken from behind him.

"Excuse me, I'm a transfer student, please allow me to introduce my self." Ichigo craned his neck back to see Rukia in the standard Karakura high uniform giving him an extremely fake smile.

"Hmm? Oh, hey Rukia." He greeted, completely nonchalant. Her smile slipped a fraction, showing her disappointment towards his reaction, but other than that she remained composed in her act.

"Huh, how do you know Rukia-chan, Ichigo-san?" Questioned Keigo, who seemed to be behind Rukia. Weird, normally he wouldn't miss the presence of someone, then again, it was Keigo, he was easy to ignore.

"Met her the other day in the store when I was picking up some groceries. She lost most of her luggage on the way here and was buying replacements." Came his answer as he sat down. She was here for a reason, he'd just have to ask her in a more private setting. Until then, though, it was nap time.

Let it be known that Kurosaki's Ichigo was not a fan of math.

Or reading.

Or history.

Okay, so he couldn't care less about school, can you blame him?


	2. Chapter 2

"So I ended up taking all your powers and have to kill Hollows until they return?" Asked Ichigo, standing atop the school roof.

"Well, yeah." Answered the currently powerless Shinigami.

"Okay."

"Wait, what?" He was accepting it that easily? She was expecting a little more argument from him.

"I said I'll do it. You helped me and my family, this seems like the best way to pay you back right now." Came the explanation of the strawberry, leaning against the railing and letting the sun wash over him. Gods he loved the sun, it always made him feel energized, like he could take on the entire world and win without breaking a sweat.

"A-alright." Rukia still couldn't believe it had been so easy, she had even prepared a speech complete with pictures!

"So how will I know when a hollow appears?" Inquired the substitute Shinigami.

"I'll notify you when they're here, and I'll separate you from your body when the time comes to fight them." He nodded a few times before freezing.

"Come again?" He asked incredulously. "I don't think I heard you right, something about separating me from my body…"

"You must be in your soul form when fighting hollows, it will allow you to access your Shinigami powers and purify them with your Zanpakuto."

"Goddamnit, why do things have to become complicated?" He questioned the sky. He hadn't expected a response, but the cloud that just covered the sun looked suspiciously like a hand giving him the middle finger…

* * *

A final screech pierced the air as yet another hollow dissipated, that was the twelfth today alone. Like he didn't already have enough shit to deal with between pissed-off local gangs, school assignments, and the clinic his family ran. Why don't you just add more, yeah, go for it, he didn't mind. Somewhere, a god was laughing at him, he knew it.

He was about to return home when another Hollow's roar sounded, unlucky number thirteen.

"Goddamnit!"

* * *

Flames of a brilliant gold rose up from the grassy ground, catching her attention. This hadn't happened before, what was it? Could it be the landlord? When the flames dissipated it showed that it was in fact her landlord, laying on the grass in a pair of pajamas. He blearily opened his eyes and looked around, probably more confused then she was.

As much as she tried to stifle it, she began giggling at his current attire and the confused look on his face, especially when a turtle-duck plopped itself down on his chest and gave him a happy quack.

Her girlish giggles caught his attention and a blush found its way to his face as he took in her form. There was a reason that Sode no Shirayuki was considered one of the most beautiful Zanpakuto in all of soul society. By the time she managed to regain control over herself he had already moved over to her, sitting at her side with the turtle-duck contently nestled in his lap.

"I don't think we've had the pleasure of being introduced." He held out his hand. "I'm Kurosaki Ichigo." By now the blush was gone and the confident teen was back.

"Sode no Shirayuki." Replied the Zanpakuto. "But I suppose you won't be able to hear it."

"Won't be able to hear it, what are you talking about, Shirayuki-san?" He questioned, lightly scratching the head of the turtle-duck with his index finger.

She gasped in surprise, completely shocked that he had heard her name. "Y-you know my name?"

"Um, yeah, you just told it to me." He was starting to get confused, well, more confused. He was still unaware of his current location, but he would admit that it was very nice. He wouldn't mind spending more time somewhere like this, especially with a beautiful woman to keep him company.

"That shouldn't be possible!" Exclaimed said beautiful woman. "Only our wielders can hear our name, and that's after they're ready for Shikai!"

"Eh?" He was so far beyond confused.

* * *

The following morning Ichigo awoke with a massive headache. Shikai, sentient weapons, Bankai, tests, special powers? Just when he thought this Shinigami stuff couldn't become more complex. It seemed the gods wanted to screw with him further, because when he opened his closet for a change of clothes he was met with the sight of Rukia, clad only in a pair of white panties and his sister's pajama top.

It is important to note that aforementioned pajama top was completely unbuttoned and barely covered her breasts, or at least what little she had. He wasn't quite sure if they could be considered such yet, was there a minimal size requirement?

Now, while most teens would get a bloody nose or try to bed her, Ichigo wasn't exactly normal. While she screamed he casually pulled out today's clothes, unaffected by her attire at all. He had bathed with his sisters often enough, her body wasn't all that different. Within his head he could hear Sode no Shirayuki giggling at his thought and nodding in agreement.

"What the fuck are you doing in my closet?" He asked as he removed his sleep-shirt, unconcerned about changing in front of a woman.

"I was sleeping, you moron!" Shouted the flustered Shinigami, holding a blanket tight to her chest in an effort to keep him from seeing….well…nothing, actually. Maybe she didn't like people seeing her legs?

"And what possessed you to sleep in my closet of all places?" Seriously, what gods did he piss off?

"Where else would I sleep? I need to be close to you in case of a Hollow attack!" She did realize that her shouting would draw the attention of the rest of the house's occupants, right? She wasn't really dressed properly to meet them and make a good impression.

Deciding to have a bit of fun at her expense, Ichigo reached out and picked her up by the waist, placing her on the ground and pressing her against the wall. He gave the even more flustered shinigami a shark-like grin.

"You know, you just had to ask." He whispered huskily.

"W-what?"

The door opened as he leaned in towards her face. "You're welcome in my bed anytime, Rukia-chan." Both Rukia and Yuzu, who had come to tell Ichigo that breakfast was ready, fell to the ground, their faces a bright red.

Giving a deep laugh, Ichigo proceeded to change and made his way downstairs for some of Yuzu's delicious cooking.

* * *

Placing his book bag on his desk, Ichigo chuckled as Rukia jumped through the window, still blushing from this morning. She had been like that all day, refusing to meet his gaze, and so he had taken the liberty of getting just a little to close to her whenever possible. His fingers grazing his arm while he reached for the water fountain she was next to, his leg brushing over her rear in the hallway, opening his locker while she was standing in front of it, pinning her, anything that could make her squirm.

Maybe this wasn't so bad after all.

He shouldn't have thought that, as not seconds later a large red hand was thrust forth from a black portal that appeared on his wall, which he barely dodged.

"Rukia." No more needed to be said as the shinigami pushed aside the awkwardness she felt and separated his spirit from his body with her glove.

Carefully unsheathing his enormous blade, and managing not to scrape the ceiling, he attempted a horizontal slash, which the Hollow blocked using its claw. Perhaps 'blocked' isn't an appropriate word, as within seconds of the swords momentum being halted Ichigo sent fire coursing through it. The newly heated blade sliced through the Hollow's arm with ease, completely splitting it in two.

The pained state of the spirit was taken advantage of by Ichigo, who sent a stream of fire at the Hollow. The fire, luckily spiritual (Hey, you try explaining burn marks covering your room, you'd be concerned about it then.), crashed against the white mask, cracking it and eventually breaking through, revealing an eerily familiar face to Ichigo.

The teens momentary surprise, however, seemed to be all the time the hollow needed to escape, and escape it did, retreating to whence it came to lick its wounds.

Turning to Rukia, Ichigo let out a growl. "Explain, now!"

"Spirits that experience large amounts of dark emotions, either at the time of their death or after not having been sent to Soul Society via Konso become Hollows, that mask is a representation of their lost heart, which they hide behind."

"Goddamnit, Rukia! That would have been important to mention at the same time you explained my Shinigami duties!" Re-sheathing his blade- did he just hear a happy sigh in his mind?- he prepared to leap out the window, only pausing for Rukia's response.

"I-I just thought you wouldn't like the idea of killing lost spirits, and would refuse to take my place, I needed you to do my job while I waited for my powers to come back."

"I thought I already told you, I'm not doing this because I want to, I'm doing this because I owe you a debt."

He propelled himself into the air in search of the hollow, disappearing into the night.

* * *

Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuuuck!

Two living…er…semi-living people? Just great, now he had to focus on killing the Hollow and protecting two injured girls, classmates if he remembered correctly. The Hollow had known Orihime somehow, but he didn't care about that, all that mattered right now was the safety of the two girls, it was his duty as a substitute shinigami, and he would carry it out with honor.

"Hey, hawk-bait," He called out, diverting its attention from his classmates. "Ready for round two?"

It gave a roar, which Ichigo assumed was in agreement, and slithered towards him with speed unusual for one so large. Then again, it was also a spirit that came back as a demon and had the lower body of a snake, it just screamed 'unusual'.

The first swing missed considerably, due to the Hollow's speed and agility, but that didn't faze Ichigo. The teen smirked ad Hawk-bait (as he would start calling him from today onwards)slipped within his guard for a counterattack. The flames of his Zanpakuto glowed brightly before surging wildly, changing from red and gold to a deep azure. He swung the sword back up, barely missing the now backpedaling Hollow, but he wasn't trying to hit it.

Blue flames arced through the night air, colliding with Hawk-bait in an explosion of color, though it was mostly of indigo and crimson. The clearing smoke revealed a large burn mark almost entirely covering the Hollow's torso, and it seemed that both its arms had been blown off by his attack, leaving it helplessly bleeding to death on the pavement.

Giving it the merciful death he didn't think it deserved, Ichigo plunged his Zanpakuto into its mask, watching with disinterest as it dissolved into dust that was carried away with the wind. After all, it was just another hollow.

He noticed Rukia show up and begin attending his classmates, but he really didn't care right now. Dealing with hollows always took a lot out of him, the night purifications especially so, all he wanted to do now was go home and sleep.

On second thought, maybe some of Yuzu's leftover dinner was in the fridge, he'd eat first and then go to bed, he just saved two souls, he earned it.

* * *

Rukia watched sadly as he left without a word, she should have known better to keep him uninformed. He trusted, or had trusted, her as his only source of information about the spirit world, a world she had unintentionally dragged him into, and she had withheld information. Such things often resulted in the death of those uninformed.

She gave a sigh, she'd have to make it up to him somehow, show that she was still worthy of his trust, but until then she had work to do. Tonight's activities needed to be covered up and she needed a place to crash until she had regained his trust.

Maybe Urahara would let her stay at his shop for a few nights?


End file.
